Tooth brush attachment



Dec. 6, 1938. F. H. OGDEN 2,139,245

TOOTH BRUSH ATTACHMENT Filed Jan. 25, 1937 Patented Dec. 6, 1938 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE Claims.

This invention relates to tooth brush, attachments and has for an object to provide an attachment which may be assembled on an ordinary tooth brush and which will make possible a 5 thorough massaging of the gums while the teeth are being brushed. I

A further object is'to provide such an attach ment which requires no fastening elements separate from the attachment itself and which is readily attachable to and removable from the brush when this is desired, but which is not liable to become detached during normal use of the brush.

For a more complete understanding of this invention, reference may be had to the accompanying drawing, in which Figures 1 and 2 are perspective views of two somewhat difierent forms of the attachment, both of which embody this invention.

Figure 3 is a side elevation of a tooth brush showing the attachment of Figure l in place thereon.

Figure 4 is an end elevation of the same.

Figure 5 is a fragmentary side elevation of a tooth brush showing the attachment of Figure 2 assembled thereon.

Figure 6 is an end elevation of the same.

Referring first to Figures 1, 3 and 4, at I is shown an open flexible frame member, which may be made of soft rubber, having spaced side portions 2 and double end portions 3 connecting the side portions at their ends. These double end portions may be formed by slotting the end connecting parts at 4 to form outer and inner transverse which are substantially of the diameter or thick-- ness of the width of the side members 2, these posts preferably tapering upwardly to relatively blunt ends, and when the device is in unconstrained condition, extending substantially parallel to each other.

In Figures 3 and 4, an ordinary tooth brush constituting a supporting head for the frame member is shown having a foundation or shank l0 provided near one end with a bristle-carrying portion II, the other end forming the handle I! by which the brush may be manipulated. This handle i2 is inserted through one of the slots 4 at one end of the attachment shown in Figure 1, the attachment being moved toward the bristle-carrying portion II, and its opposite end bent down and engaged about the end 13 of the brush which is extended through the opposite slot 4. Thus the extreme end elements It outwardly of the slots 4 are engaged beneath the brush at opposite ends of the bristle-carrying portion i I, while the inner members l5 engage over the top of the-brush at opposite ends of the bristlecarrying portion. This engagement of the atachment on the brush causes the side members 2 to spring upwardly intermediate their ends, as shown in Figure 3, which alone are engaged with the brush, the bowed'portions being wholly unattached thereto, and this springing of the side members 2 also causes the posts 5 to be inclined away from each other at their upper ends, as shown in Figure 4. They are, however, not only yielding of themselves, but being carried by the yieldable 'side members 2, they are free to move in almost any direction under pressure exerted thereon when the brush is being used to brush the teeth, the side members 2 not only being yieldable downwardly, but also capable of being twisted or otherwise deformed in accordance with the direction and amount of pressure exerted on the posts 5. These posts engage the gums while the bristles 20 of the brush are employed to brush the teeth, so that not only is the brush effective to clean the teeth, but at the same time the posts 5 thoroughly massage the gums. The side portions 2 are at least as thick between their upper and lower faces as at these faces So that they do not catch on the side edges of the brush.

In the form of the attachment shown in Figure 2, the end members 24 of the frame portion are slotted horizontally, the slits 25 being positioned beneath the upper faces of these end members. The side members 26 may be the same as the side members 2 of the form previously described and these may carry the massaging posts 5 which may be of identically the same construction. When this form of the attachment is employed, the lower stretches 21 of the end members 24 are engaged beneath the brush shank at opposite ends of the bristle-carrying portion II, as shown in Figures 5 and 6, while the upper portions 28 of these end members pass above the brush shank. With this arrangement the side posts 5 normally extend substantially vertically as shown in Figure changes and modifications might be made without departing from the spirit or scope of this iiivention as defined by the appended claims.

I claim:

1. An attachment for tooth brushes and the like, said attachment comprising spaced flexible side members and spaced end members uniting said side members and lying in a substantially single plane, to provide an open flexible frame, yieldable post elements carried by and umtanding from said side members, one of said end members having a part for engagement about the brush head, the other of said end members being provided with a mounting-perforation for the recep tion of the brush handle, the axis of said perforation extending substantially at right angles to the plane of the end member.

2. An attachment for tooth brushes", and the like, said attachment comprising spaced flexible side members and spaced end members uniting said side members, to provide an open flexible frame, yieldable post elements carried by and upstanding from said side members, one of said end members being provided with a mounting-perforation for the reception of the brush head, the axis of said perforation being substantiallyparal leltothe axes of said post elements, the other end member having a part for engagement about the brush handle.

3. An attachment for tooth brushes and the like, said attachment comprisingspaced flexible side members and spaced end members uniting said side members to provide an open flexible frame, yieldable" post elements carried by and upstanding from said side members, one of said end members being provided with a mountingperforation for the reception of the forward end of the brush head, the other end member being provided with a mounting-perforation for the reception of the brush handle, the axes of said perforations being substantially parallel to the axes of said post elements,

4. The combination with a head, of a yieldable massage attachment therefor having spaced flexible side members, spaced flexible end members uniting said side members, to provide an open flexible frame, yieldable 'post 'elements, carried by and upstanding from said side members, one of said end members being attached to one end of said head, the other end member being provided with a mounting-perforation, the axis of which extends substantially parallel to the axes of the said post elements, the adjacent end of said head extending through said mounting-perforation to flex the said side members intermediate their ends outof contact with the head.

5. The combination with a head, of a yieldable massage attachment therefor j having spaced flexible side members, flexibleendmembers uniting said side members and maintaining theside members in spaced relation beyond the sides of said head, yieldable post elementscarriedbyand upstanding from said sidemembers', 'onepf said end members being attachedto one end fof'said head, the other end member'bein'gprovided with a mounting-perforation,,the'axis of which is substantially parallel to th e axes. of i said post elefrom thesides'of the head; 

